Russian military forces conducted a large-scale nuclear weapons training exercise this week, releasing video footage that officials say shows troops transporting nuclear warheads to mobile launch platforms and positioning them at deployment sites.
The country’s Defence Ministry announced that military units practiced achieving “the highest levels of combat readiness for the use of nuclear weapons” during the training operation.
The exercise spanned three days beginning Tuesday and took place throughout Russia and Belarus, occurring amid escalating tensions between Moscow and Western nations over the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Russian officials describe the situation as an existential confrontation with the West.
According to the Defence Ministry, the massive drill involved 64,000 military personnel along with more than 200 missile launchers, 140 aircraft, 73 surface ships and 13 submarines. The training included practicing launch procedures for Russian tactical nuclear weapons stationed in Belarus.
Released training footage depicted Russian nuclear forces traveling in convoy formation through dense forest areas, concealing their equipment with camouflage, and positioning launch tubes for firing.
The Iskander-M missile system featured in the exercise has a maximum range of 500 kilometers (310 miles) and can be equipped with either nuclear or conventional warheads.
